


All the Way

by alvares715



Series: Half Way - All the Way [2]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Sequel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:41:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29821638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alvares715/pseuds/alvares715
Summary: The sequel to 'Half Way.'I highly recommend reading that story first. Otherwise you'll be completely lost reading this one.Set 5 years after season 3.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Half Way - All the Way [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2194014
Comments: 28
Kudos: 34





	1. A Long Name and A Legal Contract

The sound of keys jingling in the door made Adrien Agreste the happiest person alive. He jumped over the backrest of the couch and ran over to greet the girl walking into the apartment.

"Oof!" Marinette exclaimed as she was tackled into a bear hug.

"Oh Princess, I love you. I'm so happy that you're back."

She giggled. "I love you too."

Tikki zoomed out of her purse, gave a wink to Adrien and then flew off to find Plagg.

Adrien pulled away from the hug and kissed Marinette passionately, tipping her backwards. After a minute he straightened her up and broke away, gasping for air. "I missed you so much."

"Yeah, it sure seems that way," she teased.

"My beautiful Princess, you are _never_ allowed to leave again. I can't survive without you here."

Marinette tilted her head. "It was only one night Adrien."

"One night too many," he whispered before leaning in and kissing her again.

She laughed as they separated. "Alright Kitty, let me at least come in and sit down. I'm exhausted," she said, tossing her keys into the bowl on the table next to the door.

"Of course," he replied before picking her up bridal style.

"Adrien!"

"Don't pretend that you don't like it." He carried her down the hallway to the living room. After placing her down on the couch Adrien climbed on top of her. "Is this better?"

"Much more comfortable," she laughed.

"Good. Now tell me all about your trip. Where did you end up this time?" he asked before kissing down her neck.

She closed her eyes. "We had to go all the way to Lisbon. But we finally tracked down the other six Miraculouses that were missing from the box we found in Spain."

"Anything interesting?" he asked between kisses.

"The power of motion is definitely a dangerous one. I'm really glad that it's safe with a Guardian now. Then there was the power of communication, the power of persuasion... uh, a few more."

"You don't have to travel again, do you?"

"I have no plans to travel anytime soon, Kitty."

"Good," he said, moving to look at her. "Did you already return the Horse Miraculous?"

"No, not yet. I was so tired I came straight here."

"I can return it if you want."

"No, it's okay," she said, opening her eyes. "You already helped me out so much by picking it up for me. I'll take care of it."

"Well I'm glad that you're here now. We have a lot of planning to do for the wedding."

"We just got engaged!" she exclaimed.

"I know, but I've already been waiting six years to marry you."

"We've only been dating for five."

"You know what I mean. What do you think about having the wedding on the first day of spring?"

"I think that's only a few months away," she groaned.

He collapsed on top of her. "Please Princess, pleeeeeeeeeease!" he whined into her hair.

A minute passed as Marinette was debating the idea in her mind. The sound of their pet hamster, who was happily running around his wheel inside of his cage, brought her back to reality. "You _really_ want to get married so soon?"

Adrien pushed himself up onto his arms. "Yes, I _really_ do."

She sighed. "Alright, I'll think about it. But it's not official yet!" she said quickly, seeing his excited expression.

"Oh Princess, you make me so happy," he said before kissing her again. He sighed when he pulled back. "I'm going to have to get used to calling you 'Mrs Agreste' soon."

She scrunched her face up. "I don't know about that. I'm not sure what I want to do with my name."

"Well, you could always hyphenate it," Adrien suggested.

"Right, then I'll be Marinette Dupain-Cheng-Agreste. That's way too long, I'll sound like a law office!"

He laughed. "What if I take your last name? Adrien Dupain-Cheng. It has a nice ring to it."

"You can't change your name Adrien. You're already known professionally as Adrien Agreste. Everyone will get confused if you change it."

"Alright," he said slowly. "But I don't want us to have different last names, I want everyone to know that we're married. Let's go back to Marinette Agreste. What don't you like about it?"

"It's not that I don't like it..."

"Then what's the issue?"

She closed her eyes and exhaled. "Your mom's name was Mrs Agreste. I don't want to take it away from her."

Adrien stared down at Marinette. Even after five years together, the magnitude of her kindness still surprised him. "You wouldn't be taking it, you'd be sharing it with her," he whispered.

"I just wouldn't feel comfortable," she said, opening her eyes again. "Plus, your father would have a stroke if he hears anyone call me that name."

Adrien's face fell. "He'll get over it."

"He already hates me enough, I don't want to upset him even more," she continued.

"He doesn't hate you Mari..."

She glared at him, making him stop mid-sentence. "Oh come on Adrien. He always has, and he always will. All I can hope for now is for him to tolerate me."

"Well I don't care if it upsets him, you can have whatever name you want. My mom would have loved you, and she would have wanted you to share her name with her."

"You're too sweet, Kitty," she sighed. "Why don't we talk about something else?"

Adrien raised his eyebrows. "Why don't we not talk at all?" he asked with a smirk, leaning in to kiss her again.

************************************

The shrill beeping of the alarm woke Marinette up Monday morning. With a groan she reached over to silence it before turning onto her back. A second later an arm was draped across her.

"Good morning," Adrien said, nuzzling his face into her shoulder.

"It's way too early for it to be 'good,' my Kitty."

He smiled. "You're right. But we still have to get up."

"Five more minutes," she yawned, putting the back of her hand over her mouth.

"Alright, you stay here. I need to get ready."

She quickly turned towards him and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "But I can't sleep without you here."

He chuckled. "You could sleep through a tornado, Princess."

"That's... not... true," she replied sleepily before closing her eyes.

"I'll wake you up when I'm leaving."

"Hmmm," she murmured, drifting back off to sleep.

Adrien got out of bed carefully, as to not wake Marinette, and then used the bathroom. After that he went over to their closet to change. On the way out of the room he passed by Plagg and Tikki, who were sleeping on a miniature bed by the door. The black kwami stretched after Adrien shook him awake. Then he flew to the cheese cabinet in the kitchen while Adrien made a pot of coffee and ate a croissant for breakfast.

When he was ready to go, Adrien went back to the bedroom and sat on the bed next to the sleeping girl. "I'm leaving," he whispered, placing his hand on her shoulder.

She stirred and turned towards him. "I love you Adrien. Don't forget to smile."

"I won't," he responded, pushing the hair from her eyes. "And the shoot won't take too long so I'll make dinner tonight."

"Oh, I actually have to stay late at school so I won't be home for dinner."

"Alright, I'll make it tomorrow then."

She reached up and put her hand to his cheek. "You're too good to me."

He smiled down at her. "I love you Marinette. Have a good day at school." He gave her a light peck on the lips and left.

************************************

The photoshoot only took a few hours so Adrien was out by midday. Before he went home, he stopped by the cemetery to visit his mother's headstone. Then he picked up a few things at the market.

Back at the apartment he cleaned up a little and texted his best friend Nino. He also sent a text to Marinette just to let her know that he was thinking about her. She responded a little while later with a string of heart emojis, which brought a huge smile to his face. After eating dinner he sat down on the couch and turned on the news.

A noise at the door got his attention. With a big smile he stood up and hurried over to it. "Did you forget your keys again?" he asked, opening the door. Seeing who was outside, his smile completely disappeared.

His father stared down at him. "You don't look too happy to see us."

"Sorry," Adrien replied. "I'm just surprised, that's all." He stepped back to allow Gabriel and Nathalie to walk inside. "I didn't know that you were planning on coming by," he continued, following them into the living room.

"You haven't been returning my calls," his father explained.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I've been really busy lately."

"Well I was hoping to speak with you about something important. Is now a good time?"

Adrien nodded.

"Excellent," Gabriel continued. "Is Marinette here?"

"No, she had to stay late at school tonight."

He raised his eyebrows. "Really? She's at school? What is she doing there?"

"I'm not sure, she didn't say. Probably a project or something."

Gabriel nodded. "Well I wanted to speak with you about the wedding."

Adrien was taken aback. "You do?"

"Of course. Come sit down."

They both sat on the couch. Like usual, Nathalie remained standing.

"I just wanted to confirm with you that you're planning on having a long engagement before you get married," Gabriel continued. "With both of you being so young, there's absolutely no reason to rush into these things."

Adrien frowned slightly. "Actually, we weren't thinking of having a long engagement at all. We were thinking about maybe having the wedding in the spring."

" _This_ spring?"

"Yes, _this_ spring."

"Oh Adrien," his father sighed. "That's only a few months away. What's the rush? There's absolutely no reason..." he trailed off as a horrified look crossed his face. "Oh for goodness sake, Marinette's not pregnant, is she?" he demanded.

Adrien glared at him. "No, Marinette is _not_ pregnant. But it's good to know that you'd react so positively if she was," he added sarcastically.

Gabriel looked relieved. "Why are you rushing this then?"

"We're not rushing anything. I've wanted to marry her for six years."

"You've only been dating for five."

"You know what I mean," Adrien groaned. "Look, nothing is official yet. And believe it or not, Marinette actually thought that a spring wedding was too soon also."

"Well, that's reassuring," his father said, nodding. "I think that you should seriously consider waiting a year or two. After all, you're still very young. You don't want to rush into this and then regret it later on."

Adrien subconsciously clenched his fists. "Let me clarify one thing for you, Father. I will _never_ regret marrying Marinette. This wedding is going to happen, so you can either support us or you can leave."

A scowl appeared. "I support you and your decision. If I didn't I wouldn't be here right now."

"Good," Adrien replied, relaxing.

"There is one more thing that we need to discuss though."

He tensed up again. "Yes?"

"If you and Marinette do get married, I must insist that you have her sign a prenuptial agreement."

Adrien blinked. "A prenuptial agreement?" he repeated.

"It's a legal contract that protects your wealth in the event that you two divorce..."

"I know what it is," he interrupted. "We won't need one."

Gabriel pressed his lips together before speaking. "You come from a wealthy family. Marinette does not. It's not personal."

"I seriously doubt that," Adrien mumbled to himself. He exhaled and looked at his father. "I'm not making her sign any agreement."

"Adrien, I know that you're in love with her but you have to think rationally. These things are common nowadays. If the situation were reversed I'm sure that her parents would be insisting on it too."

"I don't care," he replied, shaking his head. "She's not signing anything."

Gabriel was not happy. But he knew that if he pushed the issue, Adrien would only be more defiant. "Well it's something to think about. And you have plenty of time to consider your options."

"Maybe not as much time as you'd like."

The man narrowed his eyes. He opened his mouth to speak but stopped at hearing the door open.

"Hey, I'm back," Marinette called out as she entered the apartment and closed the door behind her.

Adrien quickly stood up. "We have guests!"

Marinette paused in the hallway before slowly walking to the living room. She forced a smile on her face. "Good evening Mr Agreste, Miss Sancoeur."

"Good evening Miss Dupain-Cheng," Gabriel responded, standing up. "Adrien tells us that you had to stay late at school tonight." He glanced down momentarily at the engagement ring on her left hand.

"Uh, yes. I would have tried to get here earlier if I knew that you were visiting."

"We just came by for a quick talk. I'm afraid that we have to be on our way now. I hope you have a pleasant evening." He walked past her and left through the door.

"Congratulations on the engagement," Nathalie whispered to Marinette as she followed her boss.

"Thanks," she whispered back, now with a genuine smile on her face. Once the door closed, she turned to Adrien.

He went up and kissed her, wrapping his arms around her. Afterwards he sighed happily. "I missed you."


	2. A Castle, A Fragrance and A Favorite Meal

The next morning they got to sleep in a little bit. Marinette didn't have classes until the afternoon and Adrien didn't have any work that day.

Around nine they finally got out of bed and ate breakfast together. Afterwards Marinette went back to their bedroom and started working on a piece for school. They had set up her sewing machine and other supplies in a corner of the room so Marinette could work on her designs. Adrien lay on the bed with his phone, intently focused on a new internet search.

After twenty minutes, he found what he was looking for. He held out his phone so Marinette could see it. "What do you think? A wedding venue fit for a princess like you."

Her eyes widened at seeing the website for the Château de Versailles. "Oh my gosh, that place looks amazing. Why do I have a feeling that it's _way_ over the budget though?"

"My princess deserves the wedding of her dreams. There is no budget!" he insisted.

She sighed. "I know you're excited Adrien, but this is way too much. We don't need to get married in a castle for me to get the wedding of my dreams. All I need is to be marrying _you_. I mean, we could just go down to city hall. Plus, I'm sure that places like that are booked years in advance. And I know that you don't want to wait that long."

His face fell. "Alright," he said reluctantly. "But I want us to get married someplace nice. I don't want to just go to city hall. I want to show you off so that the whole world knows that you're my bride."

That earned a smile from her. "You're so silly, my Kitty. I'm sure that we can compromise and find something that's in between a castle and city hall."

He smiled triumphantly. "But someplace really nice."

"Someplace nice," she confirmed with a nod. "But let's not go too crazy. My parents will appreciate it if things don't get too expensive."

Adrien got up and went over to her. "We can handle it. I don't want your parents to have to pay for the wedding."

"And _I_ don't want your father to have to pay for it."

He kneeled down in front of her and grabbed her hand. "When I said 'we,' I meant me and you. Not me and my father."

She tilted her head. "So, what you really mean is 'you.' You know that I don't have any money. And I don't even have a job right now. Between school, my internship and being a Guardian, I don't have time to work and make any money."

"Princess, we're a couple, and we're getting married. Whatever money I make is _our_ money, not just mine."

She put her other hand to his cheek. "I still don't understand how I got so lucky to find you."

After leaning in and kissing her, he responded. "You know that I'm the lucky one. And besides, as soon as you get your big break and become a world famous fashion designer, you'll be making _tons_ more money than me. I'll get to quit my job and stay home, ready to answer to your every beck and call."

She laughed. "Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" she asked, caressing his cheek with her thumb.

"More than anything."

************************************

After Marinette left for class Adrien met up with Nino at his and Alya's apartment. He worked mostly in the evenings as a DJ so they got to hang out a lot during the day when Adrien didn't have a gig.

After watching the Paris Saint-Germain football match on TV, Adrien remembered something that he wanted to ask Nino about. "So where are you and Alya getting married?"

"Oh, it's a hotel near Alya's parent's house, I can never remember the name. Something Fayette, or maybe Lafayette?"

"Alright, well that's super helpful," he chuckled. "I'll ask Alya, I'm sure she knows."

"Yeah, she'll know," Nino replied. "Why are you asking anyway? It will be on the invitation when we send them out."

"I'm starting to look for a place for ours. Just trying to get some ideas."

"You're looking already, dude?"

"Yeah. We were thinking about having the wedding in the spring, so we have to start planning stuff now."

A smirk grew across Nino's face. "The spring, huh? What's the rush? Are you expecting a little Adrien or Adrianna to make an appearance soon?"

Adrien groaned. "Why does everyone assume that Marinette is pregnant? Can't we just get married because we _want_ to?"

"So, she's not pregnant?"

"No she's not, but thank you for the concern. I just want to marry her. I've wanted to marry her for six years."

"I thought you've only been dating for five?"

Adrien glared at him. "We just don't want a long engagement, that's all."

Nino nodded with a knowing smile. "Ohhhhh, I get it now. She's holding out on you, isn't she?"

He put his palm to his forehead in exasperation. "This is the end of this conversation. I'm leaving," he said, standing up.

Nino laughed. "Hang in there, dude. The countdown is on now!" he called out after him as he left through the door.

************************************

It was going to be a long and tiring day, Adrien could just tell.

After waking up before dawn the next morning, he went to a studio in the middle of downtown Paris. Even though he had signed with a modeling agency, he was still the face of his father's brand. And they were filming the newest commercial for his fragrance 'Adrien' that day.

The last commercial took fourteen hours to film, so he was less than thrilled. And his mood only worsened when he found out who he was modeling with.

"Hi Adrien," Lila Rossi purred as she took her seat next to him at the make-up station.

"Hi Lila," he mumbled back.

"It's so wonderful to work with you again. I always thought that we had such great chemistry together."

"Uh huh," he replied, trying not to engage too much in conversation. He had known Lila for years, and she had not changed at all since lycée. Lying and manipulation were still her most prominent traits. And Adrien couldn't stand her. It had taken him a while, but he finally figured out why she bothered him so much; she reminded him of his father.

"I heard about your engagement," Lila continued. "Congratulations."

"Thanks."

"I can't believe that you and Marinette are still together after all these years. She was the first girl you ever dated, right?"

"Yup, the first and only," he said.

"Hmm," Lila murmured. "I admire you Adrien. I think that most people would be nervous about marrying the first person they ever dated. Not knowing if they're _truly_ the right one because you don't have anything to compare them with. Always wondering if there's someone better out there." She sighed. "But not you. I'm sure you don't have any concerns at all!"

He nodded and smiled over at her. "You're right, I don't. Thanks for reminding me, Lila." With that, he stood up and walked away.

The girl snarled as she watched him go over to wardrobe.

After he changed, Adrien went to the set. Lila joined him there a minute later and they got started on the first scene.

Even though he was working with someone he greatly disliked, Adrien was a complete professional. He was able to put on a genuine smile every time. All he had to do was think about Marinette. Her smile, her laugh, her beautiful blue eyes, her soft skin, her loving heart. The list was endless. And now he had extra fuel. Now he could think about their upcoming wedding, and their upcoming wedding night.

He thought about her so much that he had to call her during their first break. He needed to hear her sweet voice.

"Hey," she said happily when she answered. "How's the commercial going?"

"Ugh, it's okay I guess. But Lila's in it too, so I have to deal with her pawing at me all day."

"Anything I need to worry about?" Marinette teased.

"Absolutely not," Adrien replied quickly.

She laughed. "I'm just joking. I know you can't stand Lila anymore than I can. I'm sorry that you're having a rough day. Will you be home for dinner?"

"Not likely. These things always take forever. You doing anything after class?"

"I have to run a couple of errands. I'll probably go for a walk. Oh, and my parents invited us over for dinner tomorrow night. Is that okay?"

"Of course! You know I love going there," he replied.

"Great. Well, I should go. My next class starts in a few minutes," Marinette said.

"I love you, Princess."

"I love you too. See you tonight."

He sighed as he disconnected the call. How he wished that Marinette was there with him. Instead he was stuck with Lila. The two girls couldn't have been more different from each other. Marinette was full of love and kindness, while Lila was full of hatred and lies.

Walking back over to the set, he resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he saw Lila approach him.

"I forgot how much fun we have together at these things," she said, batting her eyelashes at him. "It's too bad that we don't see each other too often anymore."

"Yeah, it's a travesty," he deadpanned.

"Well I have a great idea," she said, moving right up to him. "Why don't we go out tonight after the commercial is done? You know, to catch up on things," she said, smiling suggestively.

"I don't think so, Lila. I need to get home to see Marinette."

The girl laughed a little. "Oh Adrien, Marinette has such a short leash on you already! You don't _need_ to do anything. She's not the boss of you, you're allowed to go wherever you want." She placed her hand on his arm and leaned toward him. "And do whatever you want."

Adrien pulled his arm away. "Let me rephrase that," he seethed. "I _want_ to get home to see Marinette. I want to get home to see my wonderful fiancée who makes me so incredibly happy. And I definitely want to show her _exactly_ how much I've missed her today."

Lila's smile disappeared. "Well, you go do that Adrien. But just keep one thing in mind. Even if Chinese food is your favorite meal, eventually you're going to get tired of it. Sometimes you need a little variety in your diet. And I have a feeling that you'll really like the taste of some Italian."

He glared at her. "I've never cared for anything Italian," he replied.

She glared back.

"Alright, let's continue!" the director shouted out. "Adrien, Lila, places please!"

Lila smiled again. "Come on Adrien, wrap your arms around me. You seemed so happy earlier when you did. And if your hands happen to wander around a little bit, well... it will be our little secret," she said with a wink.

Adrien smiled back and put his arms around her. "I was happy because I was thinking of Marinette. And don't worry, my hands won't be wandering anywhere. Not on you, at least."

Her smile disappeared as she narrowed her eyes.

"We need a smile Lila!" the director shouted.

"Come on Lila," Adrien whispered. "We need to hurry up and get through this. Marinette and I have a busy night planned."

Her mouth fell open in shock for a moment before she plastered a fake smile on her face. 


	3. A Metro Station and A Date

Across the city Marinette propped her head up with her hand as she listened to her professor. She was in her final year at the International Fashion Academy. Audrey Bourgeois had very generously given her a scholarship to attend school and had even set her up with an internship with Louis Vuitton, arguably the best fashion house in Paris. Besides Gabriel Agreste's, that is.

But there was absolutely no way that Marinette would ever accept an internship with him. Not only because of their complicated history together, but also because she didn't want people to think that she was being favored. Everyone knew that she was dating, and was now engaged to Gabriel Agreste's son.

The lesson was dragging on and on, but at least it was the last class of the day. Maybe they would even get out early. She sure hoped so because she had a lot of things to do.

Ten minutes early. Good enough. Marinette happily packed up her bag, said goodbye to her friends and left. The first thing she did was go to a local fabric shop to get some new materials. When she was done there she went to the grocery store. After that she hopped on a bus and went back to the apartment to drop everything off.

There was one more incredibly important errand left, so she walked a few blocks to the Gare Montparnasse, the closest metro station. Like usual it was packed with people hurrying about, trying to catch their train. But Marinette was in no rush. Going through the rows of lockers, she stopped at number 368.

She grabbed the keys from her purse and opened the locker door. A smile crossed her lips as she saw the Miracle Box. With a press of a button, all of the compartments opened up to reveal the Miraculouses inside. Then she reached back into her purse and removed a pair of glasses. After putting the Horse Miraculous back in its place, she took a moment to look at the others.

Her heart sank a little when her eyes landed on the Butterfly Miraculous. She couldn't help but feel partially responsible that Adrien's mother never woke up from her enchanted sleep. They had tried everything that they could think of, but nothing worked. And now it was too late. Emilie Agreste was gone forever.

Marinette knew in her heart that his mother's death was one of the reasons why Adrien wanted to get married so soon. He wanted a family again. Of course his father and Nathalie were still around, but they would always have a strained relationship, to say the least.

His father loved him; that had already been proven when Gabriel let Adrien use the ultimate wish instead of using it himself. But even though there was love there, it didn't change the fact that he subjected Adrien to years of psychological abuse.

After Adrien turned eighteen and was legally an adult, he started cutting ties with his father. The first thing he did was sign with a modeling agency so he could make his own money. Once he had saved up enough, he moved out of his father's house and into his apartment.

He didn't cut his father out of his life completely though. He didn't want that. Even with all the horrible things that Gabriel did- the control tactics, the lies, the deception, the intimidation, the isolation, the threats, the aggressive actions and so on and so forth- Adrien still decided that he wanted his father to be a part of his life. Those things were not forgiven nor forgotten. They never would be. But Adrien wanted to move forward for his own sake.

That was no one's decision but his own. And Marinette supported him.

With a sigh she gently ran her fingers over the brooch. It was amazing how something so beautiful could cause such turmoil and strife. After a moment she turned her attention to three other Miraculouses. She picked them up, tossed them inside of her purse and then closed all of the compartments. Closing the locker door she removed her key and left.

Once back home she made herself a quick dinner. Then it was time to 'go for a walk.'

Of course, it wasn't really a walk. That was just code for patrol. She and Adrien had come up with a lot of code words so they could discuss certain things without fear of being overheard by other people.

Even though Hawk Moth and Mayura were no longer a threat, Marinette and Adrien still continued to wear their Miraculouses. And one of them would try to do patrol at least once a week. There was no need for both of them to go because there was never really anything going on. But it was good to check, just to make sure. And Marinette figured that it was a perfect night for it since Adrien would be working late.

Ladybug and Chat Noir were barely needed at all anymore. Besides the occasional burglary, car accident or fire, they didn't do much. They were more like a symbol now. A symbol of good triumphing over evil.

Now everyone in Paris seemed to have their own theory about what happened to Hawk Moth. After he disappeared five years ago, the rumor mill ran rampant. Some people thought that he just gave up. Others thought that he died. Still others thought that he was imprisoned. A few people thought that he was simply biding his time, waiting for the perfect moment to reappear and wreak havoc once more. There was even a conspiracy theory going around that Ladybug and Chat Noir had murdered him, and that the government had covered it up.

There were only four people in the entire world who knew the truth. And they weren't talking.

Marinette transformed and went outside to their balcony. Adrien had gotten the apartment on the top floor of the building so they could easily come and go when they were transformed as their superhero alter-egos. Pulling out her yo-yo, Ladybug took off across the city. She took the usual patrol route, and just like she had expected, there was nothing going on.

When she was done she climbed up to the top of the Eiffel Tower and sat down. It was so calming to just sit and listen to the sounds of Paris. Closing her eyes, she tilted her head up to the sky and felt the breeze go by.

Paris was safe. And equally as important, Adrien was safe. With the Butterfly Miraculous hidden away, there was no chance of him getting akumatized again.

It didn't matter how much time had passed, Marinette still had nightmares that woke her up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. Nightmares of a white cat with ice-blue eyes. Nightmares of a city covered in water. Nightmares of herself disintegrating into dust.

They were getting less and less frequent as time went on, but they were still there. Constantly lurking in the back of her mind, ready to emerge from the darkness when she least expected it.

Ladybug shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. That was the past. There were happy days ahead now. She and Adrien were getting married. They would be together, and she would always be there to love and protect him.

Getting up to her feet, she looked out over Paris once more. The city was absolutely breathtaking, especially at night when the lights were twinkling. With a smile she started on her journey home.

************************************

Gabriel watched the GPS signal move to the apartment. Marinette was probably going home for the night.

Pulling up the program's memory, he jotted down some addresses. The first one he recognized as her school. Then there were the addresses of a fabric shop and a grocery store. Nope, those were understandable. After that she stopped at home quickly before going someplace new. Typing the address into a search engine, he smiled when the results came up. Gare Montparnasse, a metro station.

That was an interesting one. A public place near their apartment that was easily accessible. Definitely a possibility.

He circled the address on his notepad. There was one other address already circled at the top of the paper, but that one didn't seem as promising. Something that needed investigating, nonetheless.

Seeing that Marinette had arrived back at the apartment, Gabriel shut off the program.

************************************

It was almost eleven when Adrien got home. He was disappointed that Marinette was already in bed. After the terrible day that he had had, a nice dose of Marinette was exactly what he needed. But he didn't want to wake her up. She deserved her much needed rest.

After changing he gently climbed into bed next to her. She responded by turning towards him. "How'd it go?" she asked, scooting up close to him and tucking her head under his chin.

"I thought you were asleep," he replied, smiling.

"I told you, I can't sleep without you here."

"Liar," he teased, wrapping her up in a hug. "I'm so glad that you're still awake, Princess. I've been craving you all day."

" _Craving_ me?"

"Yes," he replied before rolling over on top of her. He rubbed his thumb across her cheek as she looked up at him with her beautiful blue eyes. "Are you sure that you want to wait until we're married to have sex?" he asked softly.

Marinette sighed. "Oh Adrien..." she began reluctantly.

"No, it's okay," he interrupted. "I respect your decision. And you know that I'm fine with waiting. I just wanted to double check, that's all."

"My poor Kitty," she said, reaching up and running her fingers through his hair.

"I'm fine. Really. I love you so much, Marinette. And I'll wait forever if I need to."

"It won't be forever, Adrien. The first day of spring will be here soon enough."

A huge smile crossed his face. "Are you serious? We can officially set the date?"

She nodded. "Yes. I want to marry you that day."

He quickly leaned in and kissed her. Pulling back, he met her gaze again. "Oh Princess, I love you so much."

"I love you too."

"I can't wait to marry you."

She giggled. "Yeah, I can tell. Your little friend is pretty excited right now."

He laughed too. "I'm sorry, but that's kind of your fault. You know that you drive me so crazy."

"Yup, totally my fault. I just hope that you're not going to punish me," she smirked at him.

"Princess!" he whined, collapsing on top of her. "You can't say things like that."

"Oh come on, Adrien. Just because we can't have sex doesn't mean that we can't enjoy each other in other ways."

A groan was heard from the miniature bed across the room. "Wake up, Sugar Cube. They're starting with their mating rituals again," Plagg moaned. "Let's go sleep on the couch."

A second later the two kwamis flew out of the room.

After a quick chuckle, Adrien pushed up on his arms to look at Marinette. "Now that we're alone, what exactly did you have in mind?"

She smiled as she reached up and pulled him back down for a kiss.


	4. A Sous Chef, An Insult and A Perfect Hiding Spot

Marinette hurried home the next day after class. She barely had time to take a shower and change before she and Adrien had to leave for her parent's house.

Sabine gave each of them a big hug as they walked in through the door. "Oh sweetie, we miss you so much!" she said to her daughter.

"I miss you too, Maman," she replied.

"Oh Adrien, why did you have to steal my little girl away from us!" Sabine continued.

Adrien laughed into the hug. "I'm really sorry about that, but I'm afraid that I'm not returning her."

She laughed. "Well, just know that I wouldn't give her up for anyone less worthy."

"Thanks Sabine," he smiled.

"Now come on, let's go upstairs. Tom is almost done cooking." She led them up to the living room. "Tom, Marinette and Adrien are here!" she called to her husband.

Tom came out of the kitchen and went right up to Adrien. He slapped a hand to his back, almost causing him to fall over. "Adrien, my boy! How are things?"

"Everything's great," he replied, trying his best to straighten back up under the weight of Tom's hand.

"And how are classes going, sweetie?"

"They're going okay. There's been a lot of assignments lately but I'm hanging in there."

"Good to hear! Now why don't you two sit at the table. I'll be out with dinner in a minute," Tom told them.

"Need any help?" Adrien asked hopefully.

He chuckled. "Of course! You know I love having my sous chef with me!"

"And I'd be absolutely _grilled_ to help out," he joked.

"Are you sure that you're not too _fried_ from work?" Tom asked, a bigger smile taking over his face.

"Don't worry, I'm not _supper_ tired today."

"Good, it will give us a chance to _ketchup_ on things."

"I'm so glad that we could make the _thyme_ for this!" Adrien replied as the two men went to the kitchen, leaving Marinette and her mother alone.

Sabine shook her head in amusement. "So how's it been living at Adrien's?" she asked, turning to her daughter.

"It's been great so far," Marinette gushed. "We're really happy."

She clapped her hands together. "How wonderful! But just so you know, you're always welcome back here if you change your mind. Not that I expect you to, of course."

"Thanks, Maman."

"You're welcome," Sabine replied. "Well let's set the table while the boys finish with the cooking."

Marinette nodded and they got to work. By the time they were done, dinner was ready and the four of them sat down at the table together.

"Thank you for having us over tonight," Adrien said as they started eating. "We always enjoy being here."

"You know that the pleasure is ours," Tom replied. "I have to admit, we've been a little sad lately since Marinette moved out. But we know that she's in good hands," he added, winking at him.

"Papa, you're going to make me cry!" Marinette exclaimed.

"Oh sweetie, don't you worry about us. We're fine. Plus, I have a feeling that Adrien would try to kidnap you if we made you come back home."

Adrien laughed. "You know me too well, Tom."

Laughter made its way around the table before Sabine spoke. "Marinette tells us that you were shooting a new commercial. How did that go?"

"Uh, it was okay. It'll probably come out next month." He paused before continuing. "Please don't read too much into it when you see it. I had to act with another model, and we had to act like we were a couple. So, please don't get upset by it," he said awkwardly.

Tom chuckled. "Don't you worry, son. We understand that it's just part of the job."

"Thank you," Adrien replied, relieved.

"Plus, we're all well aware that Marinette would murder you if you ever tried anything like that."

Marinette groaned.

Adrien smiled. "You know _her_ too well."

More laughter from three quarters of the people in the room.

"Anyway," Marinette said in slight annoyance. "I guess that the two of you will be the first to know that we officially picked a date for the wedding."

"You decided already?" Sabine asked, surprised.

"Yeah, we're going to have it this March, on the twentieth. It's the first day of spring."

Tom and Sabine stared at her for a moment before exchanging glances.

"That's... soon," Tom murmured.

"I know, but we didn't want to wait too long. And it falls on a Saturday, so that works out perfectly."

"I see," Sabine replied, nodding at her and smiling.

Adrien had to interject. "Marinette's not pregnant."

The girl's mouth fell open in shock and she whipped her head around to look at him. "W... why would you say that?"

Her parents chuckled as he mumbled his reply. "They probably assumed that you are."

"I'm sorry Marinette, but that's what I was thinking," Sabine admitted.

"Me too," Tom chimed in.

Marinette turned to look at them. "Oh my gosh, I'm _not_ pregnant!"

"Well we know that now. Adrien just told us," Tom continued, wiping away a tear of laughter.

"Don't be upset," Adrien said to her. "I mean, everyone else assumed the same thing when I told them the date."

She turned back to him and narrowed her eyes. "Who is 'everyone else'?" she demanded.

He nervously put his hand to the back of his neck. "Not too many people. Just Nino. And, uh... my father," he added quietly.

Marinette dropped her fork, covered her face with her hands and muffled a scream before glaring at him. "Your father thinks that I'm pregnant?"

"No, no. I mean, not anymore," he replied quickly.

"When did you even tell him the date?"

"Uh, on Monday when he came over."

She blinked. "Monday? We didn't even agree on the date until last night. And you told me that you didn't talk about anything important with him. Is there anything else I need to know?" she asked angrily.

"Why don't we give you two some privacy," Sabine said, starting to stand up.

"No," Marinette insisted. "You don't need to leave." She turned back to Adrien. "Well?"

He glanced helplessly at Tom, who was smart enough not to get involved, before answering her question. "He told me that he wants us to wait a year or two before we get married."

She closed her eyes momentarily and sighed. "Well that's not a complete shocker. Anything else?"

Looking down at the table, he said the thing that he really didn't want to say. "He wants you to sign a prenuptial agreement."

Marinette sighed again. "Oh Adrien," she said softly. "Of course he does, that's completely understandable. You guys are rich, we're not. I assumed that he would insist on it as soon as we got engaged. And I don't care, I'll sign one. We're not going to get divorced so it doesn't matter..."

"You're right," he interrupted. "We're not going to get divorced. So you don't need to sign one."

"But if it will make your father happy..."

"I don't care if he's happy. I'm not going to insult you by making you do that."

"I'm not insulted!" she argued back gently as she moved closer to him. "I love you Adrien. I want to marry you and I want to _stay_ married to you for the rest of our lives. I'm just trying to keep the peace."

He leaned towards her and put his hand to her cheek. "I'm sorry Marinette. I love you so much and you're so incredibly wonderful. I'm sorry that I told them the date before we officially decided on it, but I was just really excited. And I'm sorry that I didn't tell you what my father said on Monday, I didn't want you to be upset."

"No, it's okay Adrien. I'm sorry that I got angry at you."

"No, you know you're not allowed to be sorry. I love you so much. Please forgive me," he begged.

"I forgive you..." she barely got out before he slammed his lips to hers. She responded by wrapping her arms around his neck as they continued kissing passionately.

Tom and Sabine, who were obviously forgotten about, exchanged glances again. After about thirty seconds, and with no end of the make out session in sight, Tom finally cleared his throat.

Marinette and Adrien jumped apart and straightened out. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as her face burned brightly. "Sorry about that," she squeaked out.

"It's no problem, sweetie," Sabine said. "It's not like we haven't seen it from you two before."

They kept their eyes down, both too embarrassed to make eye contact with her parents.

Tom leaned over to his wife. "If she's not pregnant now, it sure seems like she will be soon enough," he joked quietly.

Marinette covered her face again and the tips of Adrien's ears turned red. But Tom and Sabine were too busy chuckling to notice either of their reactions.

************************************

Knowing that Adrien and Marinette were at her parent's for the evening, Gabriel left his house and drove to the first address on his notepad. It was a seven-story apartment building on Avenue du Colonel Bonnet, about twenty minutes away from Adrien's place.

There was nothing special about it, just an average beige building in a middle-class neighborhood. It was in the middle of a completely residential area, surrounded by other apartment buildings, so the signal was definitely coming from an apartment.

Without having access to go inside, Gabriel simply observed it for a while before he went to the next address. When he got to the metro station he actually got out of the car and walked inside.

The place was huge. After wandering around for a few minutes, he came upon the lockers. There had to be hundreds of them.

His trademark scowl intensified at looking at the rows.

This was the perfect place to hide something. Marinette was smart. She wouldn't be stupid enough to keep the Miraculouses at home. Not with him knowing her identity. And not with the possibility, however small, of someone breaking in and finding them.

But a locker at a train station? What a great alternative. It was easily accessible, but still safe. There were security cameras and transportation officers everywhere, keeping a twenty-four hour watch. All you needed was a key. And to know the right locker number of course.

A little bit more work would be required.

Done with the mission for the day, Gabriel returned to the car and drove back home.

Upon entering the front door he discovered Nathalie in the foyer waiting for him. "Did you drive yourself somewhere, Sir?" she asked.

"I went to visit Emilie," he lied.

She nodded. "I would have taken you."

"It's not a problem, Nathalie. I'm more than capable of driving myself places."

"Of course, Sir."

"Well since you're here right now, I need you to arrange something for me."

"Yes?" she asked hesitantly. Then she raised her eyebrows in surprise at listening to him explain what he needed. When he was done, she spoke again. "I think that's a wonderful idea."

"Excellent. Oh, and you wouldn't mind going too, would you?"

"Of course not, Sir."

"Very well. Now if you'll excuse me," Gabriel said, walking into his study and closing the door behind him.

As soon as he was gone, Nathalie took out her phone and pressed a few buttons. She held it up to her ear as the other line started ringing.


	5. Demands and Mannequins

Marinette had her internship on Friday, so she was at the Louis Vuitton design studio all morning and afternoon. Completely exhausted by the busy week, she was looking forward to a relaxing evening.

Her hopes were dashed when Adrien called her on the way home.

"I just got off the phone with my father," he told her. "He's coming over tonight."

"He's coming over again? Did he say why?"

"He only said that he wanted both of us to be there."

Marinette sighed. "Do you think that's a good thing or a bad thing?"

"With my father, I'm _never_ sure," Adrien replied.

"Will he be eating with us?"

"I don't know. I'm assuming not. He usually only stays long enough to make his demands and then leaves."

"Adrien," she groaned, putting her palm to her forehead.

"When will you be home?" he continued.

"I'm about fifteen minutes away."

"Good. I'm going to clean up a little. I'll see you when you get here."

"Bye Adrien," she said, disconnecting.

************************************

Gabriel and Nathalie arrived at seven o'clock sharp. Adrien greeted them at the door and let them inside. Marinette was standing in the living room waiting for them. "Good evening Mr Agreste, Miss Sancoeur," she said once they made their way in.

Nathalie smiled and nodded at her.

"Good evening Miss Dupain-Cheng," Gabriel replied. "We apologize for dropping in on such short notice."

"It's no problem at all. Would you like something to drink?"

"No thank you, we won't be staying too long. I was hoping to speak with both of you about something important."

"Yes, of course. Please sit down."

Gabriel sat on the couch first, followed by the young couple. He looked at Marinette, who subconsciously straightened her posture under his gaze. "Adrien tells me that you're planning on having the wedding this coming spring."

Marinette took a deep breath. "Yes, we actually decided to get married on the twentieth of March."

A noticeable pause.

"I see," he finally murmured. "Well, that makes what I came here to talk about even more pressing. After all, March is only a few short months away."

Marinette remained silent, waiting for the bomb to drop.

"I'm not sure if Adrien mentioned our conversation the other day, but I brought up the subject of a prenuptial agreement..."

Adrien cut him off. "I already told you, she's not signing one."

The father and son glared at each other until Marinette spoke.

"Yes, Mr Agreste," she said, answering his question. "He told me, and I'll be happy to sign it."

Adrien quickly looked at her. "Marinette..."

"Excellent," Gabriel continued, ignoring Adrien's objection. "I'll have our lawyers draw up the paperwork and send them over for you to read and sign when you're ready."

"Marinette," Adrien repeated in a hushed tone. "I told you that I don't want you signing one."

"Adrien," she lamented. "You know I'm fine with it..."

" _I'm_ not," he interrupted.

The girl sighed. "Well talk about this later," she whispered before turning back to Gabriel. "Yes, please send it over when it's ready so I can... review it."

Gabriel nodded, a faint smile gracing his lips. "Now let's move on to my next concern."

Marinette mentally braced herself.

"Your dress."

She blinked. "My... dress?" she repeated.

"Usually it takes about six months for a wedding dress to be made and fitted before a wedding. With such a short amount of time, you need to pick one out as soon as possible," Gabriel explained. "Nathalie has set up an appointment for you to go to my wedding collection gallery tomorrow. After getting measured you'll be able to try on and order whichever dress you'd like. I'll make sure that it goes to the front of the line to be finished in time for spring."

Both Marinette and Adrien stared at him.

"You... want Marinette to pick a dress?" Adrien asked slowly.

"Yes," Gabriel replied.

"For our wedding?"

He tilted his head. "Of course. She would look a little foolish wearing a bridal gown to the grocery store."

Marinette couldn't believe it. That was the closest thing that Gabriel ever got to making a joke. "Mr Agreste, that's very kind of you to offer. But I was planning on making my own dress."

"Nonsense," Gabriel said. "Between school and your internship, you must barely have enough time to sleep, let alone design and create an entire bridal gown. You know how much work goes into them."

"I'm very sorry, but I must decline your offer," Marinette continued with some embarrassment. "I... I'm afraid that I won't be able to afford one of your designs."

"Don't be absurd, Miss Dupain-Cheng. You won't have to pay for the dress." He looked over at Adrien. "In fact, why don't you join us after her appointment to pick out your suit? That way you'll both have your attire selected and ordered to be made in time for the big day. Consider them to be my wedding gift to you."

The couple looked at each other momentarily before Adrien spoke. "Father, would you excuse us for a minute?"

Gabriel stood up. "Take your time." He walked towards the kitchen, Nathalie following.

The couple turned to face each other.

"I don't like this," Adrien whispered to Marinette. "He's being too nice."

"He's probably just doing this so I'll sign the prenuptial agreement," she whispered back.

"Which you're not signing, by the way. But no, you already said that you would sign it before he offered this. Something's going on."

"But what could he possibly gain from it? Maybe he's just trying to make amends."

"My father _never_ apologizes. Not sincerely, at least."

She sighed. "Well... maybe he wants us to wear his brand. You know, for the publicity? I mean, it would look really bad if his own son and daughter-in-law didn't wear his designs. Plus, he was right. I don't have enough time to make a proper gown on my own. And the wedding is already going to be a lot of money. This way we'll have two expenses covered."

Adrien reached up and ran his fingers along her face. "Alright Princess," he finally said reluctantly.

She smiled at him. "Everything will be fine, you'll see."

He nodded, giving her a small smile. Then he looked over towards the kitchen. Nathalie was typing into her tablet, but Gabriel wasn't there. "Father?" he called out.

Nathalie looked up, then around for her boss.

Gabriel came from the hallway. "Well, what do you think?" he asked, approaching the couple and sitting on the couch again.

"That would be a lovely wedding gift. Thank you Mr Agreste," Marinette said.

"You're very welcome, Miss Dupain-Cheng. Your appointment is at eleven tomorrow morning. Adrien, we should be done by one o'clock, so you can join us then to pick out your suit."

"I can't go to her appointment?" Adrien asked.

"Of course not. It's awful bad luck for the groom to see the bride in her dress before the wedding."

He pressed his lips together in annoyance.

Marinette looked over at him. "Oh come on Adrien, you'd probably be bored out of your mind."

"You seriously think I'd get bored looking at you?"

She laughed softly. "Well, I agree with your father. It's bad luck!"

"Well we wouldn't want that," he mumbled. Knowing that he wasn't going to change her mind, he gave in. "Alright."

Marinette smiled. "Thank you Adrien."

He glanced up at Nathalie. "Make sure she picks a nice one. Knowing her, she'll probably try to select the plainest one so it doesn't cost too much."

"I'll make sure that we find something appropriate," Nathalie replied. Then she turned to Marinette. "We'll pick you up at half past ten."

"Uh actually," the girl stammered. "Could I meet you there? I'll be out tomorrow morning."

Adrien furrowed his brow. "You're going out?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. It's... something for school. But I'll be done by eleven so I'll meet everyone there."

"Perfect. Well since that's settled, Nathalie and I will be off," Gabriel said, standing up. "We'll see you tomorrow."

"Thank you Mr Agreste," Marinette repeated as she and Adrien stood up as well.

He nodded and walked to the door. Nathalie was about to follow, but stopped when Marinette caught her attention. "Do you think it's okay if I invite my mother to go with us?" Marinette whispered to her.

"You should be fine," Nathalie whispered back. "I'll see you then."

************************************

Marinette arrived at the building a few minutes before eleven. Her mother was outside waiting for her. "I can't believe my little girl is going to be trying on wedding dresses today," Sabine said, tearing up. "It seems like just yesterday we were bringing you home from the hospital!"

"Oh Maman, please don't! If you start crying, then I'll start crying."

"I'm sorry, sweetie. I just never thought that this day would be here so soon. Not that I'm not happy. Of course I am. Adrien is a wonderful person and I know that you two love each other dearly. It's just a bittersweet moment for me and your father."

Marinette hugged her mother. "I love you, Maman. I'll always be your little girl, even after I get married."

The two held on for a minute. After breaking apart and wiping their eyes, they went inside the building.

Nathalie was there waiting for them. "Welcome Marinette, Mrs Cheng. Please follow me to the gallery." She led them to the adjoining room.

It was an enormous space with a high cathedral ceiling and large windows along one side. The opposite wall was lined with racks of wedding dresses and suits. At the far end of the room was a raised platform with mirrors and seating around it. Behind that was a changing area. Scattered around the room were several mannequins displaying high-end gowns.

Gabriel was speaking with a middle aged woman near the desk in the corner. Seeing Nathalie come into the room, he approached the group. "Miss Dupain-Cheng, Mrs Cheng, welcome to my wedding collection gallery. I would like to introduce Mrs Rousseau, the creative director for my bridal division."

The woman smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you both. And congratulations to the beautiful bride-to-be."

"Thank you Mrs Rousseau," Marinette responded. She liked her immediately.

Gabriel continued. "She knows these gowns better than anyone so she'll be assisting you today. So unless you have any questions, I'll leave you ladies to it."

"You're not staying Mr Agreste?" Sabine asked.

"I'm afraid that I have to catch up on some work, but I'll stop by later to check on things." He bowed slightly before leaving.

"Please come with me," Mrs Rousseau said, leading everyone over to the seating area. "Nathalie, Mrs Cheng, I'll have you two sit down. Miss Dupain-Cheng, I'll have you come up here."

Marinette followed her up to the platform.

"First, I'll measure you," she continued. "Then we'll go around and take a look at the gowns." She took out her measuring tape and moved around her body. "Do you have any particular style of dress in mind?"

"Not really," Marinette admitted.

"Let me ask you something then. When you think about your wedding, how do you want to feel that day? Do you want to feel glamorous, or sexy, or elegant, or something else entirely?"

She paused for a moment in thought. "I... want to feel like myself."

Mrs Rousseau smiled. "Well that's a great answer. I think I have a good idea of where we should start."


	6. A Toothless Grin, A Suit and A Panic Attack

Oh the things Gabriel Agreste would do for his wife. After leaving the gallery, he drove himself across town. He normally wouldn't be caught dead in the neighborhood he found himself in, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

After parking the car outside of a run-down building, he got out and walked into one of the stores. The inside of the building wasn't much better than the outside. The store was tiny, made even smaller by the large amount of dusty items overflowing on the shelves.

An old man was sitting behind the counter and looked up as Gabriel entered. "Good afternoon," he said. 

Gabriel walked over to him. "I heard that you make keys here."

"You heard correctly, Mister...?"

"How long would it take to make one from an impression?"

The old man grinned. "Let me take a look, make sure it's good enough."

Gabriel reached into his jacket and pulled out a small rectangular case. After handing it over, the old man popped it open to reveal a piece of clay with the impression of a key inside. 

He nodded. "Looks like you got a good one here."

Gabriel almost smiled. He was relieved that it was usable, considering how little time he had in the hallway of Adrien's apartment.

"How many do you need?" the old man continued.

"Just one."

"Alright, just one key..." he said before trailing off. He looked Gabriel up and down, noticing his expensive suit. "That'll be a hundred euros."

He scowled. "That seems like a lot of money for one key."

"But it's worth every cent. Especially if you want to keep this between us." The man smiled, revealing a mouth with no teeth left.

Gabriel sighed. "How long will it take?"

"About forty minutes."

"Make it in thirty, and I'll pay you double."

His eyes sparkled. "What did you say your name was?"

Gabriel glared at him. "I didn't."

The old man nodded and stood up. "I'll be back shortly, Sir." He ran to the back office as giddy as a kid on Christmas morning.

************************************

"What do you think, Maman?" Marinette asked as she came out of the changing room. It was the eighth dress that she tried on. She felt her heart skip a beat when she first caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. Hopefully her mother would like it as much as she did.

Sabine started tearing up again seeing her daughter walk back to the platform. "Oh sweetie, you look absolutely beautiful!"

"Stunning," Nathalie added with a huge smile.

Marinette smiled back. "I think this is it."

Sabine wiped her eyes with a tissue and sniffled. "I agree, sweetie. Definitely this one."

"Do you want to look at any more dresses, or do you want to stop here?" Mrs Rousseau asked Marinette.

"I don't need to try on any more. This is the one."

"Wonderful," the woman replied. "I'm sure that Mr Agreste will be quite pleased with your choice."

Sabine got up and hugged her daughter. "I need to get a few pictures to show your father. He's going to be crying like a baby when he sees you in this dress."

"Make sure that Adrien doesn't see them though. I want him to be surprised."

"Of course not. I will guard them with my life!" she declared. Then she tilted her head and tucked some hair behind Marinette's ear. "Adrien is going to fall in love with you all over again when he sees you wearing this dress on your wedding day."

"Maman, you're going to make me cry!"

"I'm sorry, but it's true. I just hope that he knows how lucky he is to have you."

"He does, Mrs Cheng," Nathalie answered for her. "It's very obvious that Adrien already knows."

"I'm glad. Alright now, let me get some pictures of you." She stepped back and took out her phone, snapping a few shots. 

"Well we still have a little more time," Mrs Rousseau said. "Would you like to pick out any accessories? We could take a look at veils and shoes."

"Oh, uh..." Marinette stammered. "I don't think..."

"It's all included as a part of your gift," Nathalie interrupted. "Anything you want, it's yours."

Marinette smiled, her heart full of gratitude. "Thank you Nathalie."

"We even have some jewelry if you want to take a look," Mrs Rousseau added.

She held back a laugh. "I think I'm all set in the jewelry department."

************************************

Gabriel wanted to go home and soak himself in Lysol after being in that store, but he had to go back to the gallery. At least he had accomplished his task.

He found the women sitting in the chairs talking. "And how did it go?" he asked, approaching them.

"Superbly well," Mrs Rousseau answered, standing up. "Marinette selected her dress, veil and shoes, and I've already filled out the order form."

"Excellent. I trust that you'll be able to expedite this order?"

"Yes of course Mr Agreste. I will personally make sure that it arrives in time."

"Thank you Mrs Rousseau," Marinette said. "And thank you Mr Agreste for the lovely wedding gift."

"Yes, thank you so much," Sabine repeated. "I think Adrien will be very happy with what she chose."

"There's no doubt in my mind that he will be," Gabriel replied.

Sabine turned to her daughter. "I'm sorry sweetie, but I need to go. Your father is probably drowning at the bakery without me there."

"It's okay, Maman. I'll call you later." 

The two stood up and hugged. Sabine said her goodbyes as she left.

"Well, Adrien should be here soon for his fitting," Gabriel said to Mrs Rousseau. 

"And what about you, Mr Agreste? Will you be ordering a new suit as well? After all, your son doesn't get married everyday!"

He took a moment to think. "Yes, I suppose that I should."

"How wonderful," she replied. "I'll put your order in when Adrien selects his."

Marinette's phone chimed. After checking the message, she smiled. "Adrien's here," she said to them. "I'll tell him that he can come in." She quickly typed a message back and put her phone away.

A minute later Adrien came through the door. He went straight to Marinette and grabbed both of her hands with his. "How did it go?" he asked.

"It was great. I picked a dress," she responded, smiling.

He squeezed her hands. "I'm sure it's beautiful. But not as beautiful as you, of course." Then he leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers.

"Aww, they are the cutest couple," Mrs Rousseau murmured to Gabriel. "You must be so happy that Adrien found someone like her."

"Ecstatic," he deadpanned. "Now, let's get started with this."

She nodded. "Adrien," she said, walking over to him. "I'm Mrs Rousseau, let's get you measured and find you a suit."

He smiled at her. "Thank you." Then he looked back at Marinette. "Will you help me pick one?"

"You want me to stay?" she asked, surprised.

"Yes I want you to stay. I have to make sure that my suit is on caliber with your dress. And since I can't see it until the wedding, I need you here to help me out. Unless... you've changed your mind and I can see the dress now?" he added hopefully.

"Sorry," she replied, giving him a coy smile. "But I haven't changed my mind."

He put a pout on. 

She laughed. "Go get measured."

After another quick squeeze, Adrien let go of Marinette's hands and went up to the platform.

"Why don't you sit down, Mr Agreste?" Mrs Rousseau suggested. "After all, we need the father of the groom to approve too."

Gabriel reluctantly sat down next to Nathalie while Mrs Rousseau started measuring him.

"So," the woman continued. "How did you two meet?"

Dead silence.

"We met at school," Marinette finally answered.

"How wonderful. And was it love at first sight?"

"Not exactly," she chuckled.

Mrs Rousseau laughed too. "I see. Well sometimes the most meaningful relationships start out a little complicated."

"I think 'complicated' is the perfect word for it," Adrien replied, smiling.

She smiled back as she finished her measurements. "So, did you have any particular style in mind?" she asked him. 

"Whatever Marinette wants."

"Adrien!" his fiancée objected. "You can pick whichever one you want!"

"It doesn't matter to me. I just want you to be happy."

Marinette sighed. "No, I don't have any particular style in mind," she told Mrs Rousseau. 

"Well why don't we try a few different options on him? Then we can see which one you both prefer," Mrs Rousseau offered.

They nodded as she went over to the suits and selected a few. Then she and Adrien made their way to the changing room.

An awkward silence filled the room as the three people waited for Adrien to return. Luckily they didn't have too long to wait. Adrien came out in a navy blue suit jacket with a black lapel, navy blue pants, a white shirt and a black bow tie. 

Marinette smiled brightly at seeing him. "You look amazing!"

He went up to the platform to check himself in the mirrors. "Yeah, I like it too. What do you think Father, Nathalie?"

"Very nice," Nathalie said, nodding.

"Yes, I agree," Gabriel added.

"Well, this seems like a contender," Mrs Rousseau remarked. "Let's try something else now." She guided him back to the changing room.

Another silence.

Next, Adrien came out in a black suit with a dark gray shirt and a black skinny tie.

A bigger smile from Marinette. "You look so handsome. I like this one even more."

"I like the sound of that," he replied before looking in the mirrors. 

"Marinette's right," Nathalie said. "You look great."

Gabriel just nodded. 

"Alright, let's try the next one." They went to the changing room again. 

"That one's my favorite so far," Nathalie whispered over to Marinette.

"Mine too," she whispered back.

"And I think it fits the style of your dress nicely."

Marinette nodded at her. "Definitely."

Adrien made his way to the platform again. Marinette turned her head to look at him, her face falling as her eyes landed on the suit. The jacket was white. The pants were white. The shirt was white. Even the bow tie was white.

And Marinette started hyperventilating.

"What do you think about this one?" he asked, checking his reflection. When she didn't respond after a moment, he turned towards her. "Mari..." he started to say but stopped at seeing her expression. He furrowed his brow. "Marinette?" he tried again, stepping towards her.

She quickly stood up, knocking her chair backwards, before backing away. She couldn't speak. All she could do was shake her head as the tears welled up in her eyes.

Adrien kept walking towards her. "What's wrong?" he asked, very concerned about her reaction.

She continued backing away and put her arms up in a defensive stance. "No," she whispered. 

He blinked at her in confusion as he stopped. Then he saw that her gaze was locked on his suit. Looking down at all the white he finally understood. He looked back up at her. "It's just me," he pleaded.

The words did nothing to calm her. Her tears started falling as she continued moving away.

"It's me," he repeated, quickly taking off the suit jacket and dropping it to the floor. He stepped forward.

"No," she cried.

"It's okay," he said, continuing to approach her. He moved up and grabbed her hands. A whimper of fear escaped her lips as he wrapped her up. Her legs gave out and he guided her down so they were both kneeling. He wouldn't let go of her. "It's just me. I'm safe, I'm safe..." he kept repeating as he held onto her.

She was struggling to get away from his grasp. Finally he pushed her back so she could see him. "Look at me, Princess. My eyes are green. I'm okay," he cried. "My eyes are green."

Marinette finally looked up at him. She stopped struggling when she found the green. 

Adrien felt her relax as they stared at each other. Her breath was slowly steadying. "Adrien?" she whispered.

He nodded. "It's me. I'm so sorry, don't be afraid Princess."

With a sniffle she nodded back. "I... I'm sorry," she choked out.

Now he shook his head. "Don't be sorry. I love you Marinette. I'm right here, and I'm safe."

She tried to compose herself. Glancing past Adrien she saw Mrs Rousseau and Nathalie with horrified looks on their faces. Gabriel had a confused scowl. 

After wiping her face, she stood up with Adrien's help. Once on her feet, she looked at him. "I'm sorry, please excuse me," she whispered before turning and quickly making her way out of the room.

Adrien watched her go. Then he turned around and slowly walked back to Mrs Rousseau, picking up the discarded jacket on the way. "I'm sorry Mrs Rousseau, but I'm afraid that this suit won't work," he said.

She nodded as she took the jacket from him.

Gabriel stood up. "What was that about?"

Adrien stared down at the floor for a moment before glaring over at him. "Nothing."

A moment of silence passed. Then he turned and went back to the changing room to get dressed.


End file.
